- Just under half of UK households admit to ‘just about managing’, with 14% admitting to giving up necessities to pay off any unexpected expenses
- Coventry tops the list with 70% of residents admitting to being JAMS
- The average UK household suffers 4 unexpected expenses a year, with 18% admitting to not being able to cover the cost of over £100
New research from www.providentpersonalcredit.com reveals that almost half (47%) of the UK consider themselves to be ‘just about managing’ financially.
The survey of 2,000 adults revealed that 14% had to give up necessities like food and daily travel costs to pay for unexpected expenses, with a further 11% of respondents saying they had to give up holidays and seasonal events like Christmas to pay for unexpected expenses. The survey results highlighted that it takes the average Brit 4 months to pay off their unexpected expenses, however 8% of the UK are still paying after 10 months!
Cities with the highest just about managing households
The nationwide research revealed which areas of the UK are considering themselves to be ‘just about managing’.Coventry top the list, closely followed by Chelmsford. The full list can be seen below:
City |
Households that consider themselves JAMS |
|
Coventry |
70% |
|
Chelmsford |
63% |
|
Bristol |
58% |
|
Plymouth |
58% |
|
Gloucester |
55% |
|
Newcastle |
53% |
|
Sheffield |
53% |
|
Glasgow |
51% |
|
Oxford |
50% |
|
Southampton |
50% |
|
London |
49% |
|
Manchester |
49% |
|
Cambridge |
48% |
|
Aberdeen |
47% |
|
Belfast |
47% |
|
Wolverhampton |
46% |
|
Brighton and Hove |
45% |
|
Birmingham |
44% |
|
Portsmouth |
44% |
|
Leicester |
43% |
|
Worcester |
43% |
|
Norwich |
42% |
|
Liverpool |
41% |
|
Edinburgh |
39% |
|
Swansea |
39% |
|
Leeds |
36% |
|
Wrexham |
33% |
|
Cardiff |
28% |
Unexpected expenses troubling Brits
One of the biggest unexpected expenses troubling Brits are cars - costing £226 on average a year in unexpected costs. With 52% of respondents saying they’ve had at least one car related unexpected expense last year and 18% of respondents saying they knew about the issue but left it to get steadily worse.
After general household bills denting another £239 a year in unexpected costs, other expenses that might be smaller but add up throughout the year include:
Pets – £80 on average annually
Christmas - £93 on average annually
Leisure - £97 on average annually
A full breakdown of statistics on unexpected expenses in the UK can be seen at https://www.providentpersonalcredit.com/unexpected-expenses/